Chapter 5

It was a little after noon that Jake turned his horse off the rough, barely noticeable trail that they had been following all morning. Though not as hot as midsummer, it was still a warm day, and they had been riding for several hours.

He chose this place as, for some reason, a large tree had established itself amongst the more general scrub and rough bushes. Its shelter would be welcome.

Swinging his leg over his horse's back, he dismounted. Feeling a little stiff after several hours in the saddle, he staggered around for a while to get the kinks out of his legs and back.

The girl pulled her two horses up alongside Jake's. She nearly fell when she got down, and seemed in worse condition than Jake. He watched her, and realised that riding with just a blanket between her and her horse's back probably wasn't the most comfortable way to travel over distances.

The shade of the tree was an obvious stopping place along the trail. There were signs of a previous fire at the edge, and plenty of space to sit. Jake decided that they wouldn't light a fire as he wanted a short break and then to be on his way. There was also no obvious source of water, although something must be sustaining the tree, so he used a small bowl to water the horses, using up a complete canteen in the process. With five horses and two people, he would have to think about how much water they would need while they were travelling. He had three canteens, and he'd noticed that the girl had two skin bags that she had used while they were riding.

The girl - he had to remember that she was Sue. Well, actually she was something like Sue-arta-olar, but Sue seemed easier. He looked over to where she was getting some dried jerky out of his pack - she knew where it was now. She looked strange with the heavily embroidered dress, the slightly baggy buckskin pants, and the gunbelt that was too big for her.

Although it would delay their journey for a short while, he decided it was time for her to start learning how to use that gunbelt. There was no point carrying the thing around all the time if she couldn't use the gun, and the knife. He would show her, or at least start to show her, how to fire the gun at these midday breaks. Then anyone who heard the noise, and decided to investigate, would find them gone. He didn't want to attract attention to their night-time camps.

After they had sat for a while, and had some dried meat and some water, Jake motioned for her to stand up. "Let's show you how that gun works, lass," he said, continuing to talk with her normally. She didn't reply but she did stand, so he beckoned her over to stand at the edge of the tree's shade. Beyond was just some scrub and a small mound, and they were well away from the horses which were all tethered to branches of the tree on the other side.

When she was standing next to him he reached down and took her pistol out of her holster. He showed it to her, and once again slowly showed her how to cock it, how to aim it, and waggled his finger near the trigger to show how to fire it. He then uncocked it and held it out to her, butt first.

She took it from him, her arm sagging a little as it was heavier than she expected. She shifted her grip on the butt as she got used to the feel of it. He noticed she used her right hand to take it, so she was probably right-handed, the same as him.

Jake went round behind her and put his arms around her. She flinched and stiffened but otherwise gave no sign. Reaching forward, he took the hand that held the gun in his right hand, and her left hand in his. He brought his hands together, putting both of her hands on the gun butt as he felt it would be easier for her to fire the gun with both hands to start with. He raised his arms, and hers, so the gun was pointing out ahead of her into the bushes.

"Hold it still, and lock your arms," he said to her. Though she still didn't understand what he said, she could work out what he was doing so she pushed the gun out and held it tight.

"Aim," he said, moving the gun slightly as he pointed it at a specific bush. "Aim," he said again.

She realised that this was an important word, so she said it too - "Aym".

"Aim," he said again, moving the gun and deliberately pointing it at a different bush. "Aym," she repeated.

He cocked the gun with his thumb. "Cock ... Cock." "Cok." "Cock." "Cok."

He then held the hammer back with his thumb and waggled his finger, and then pressed the trigger while slowly letting the hammer down. "Uncock," he said. "Uncock." "Uncok." "But slowly - slooowleeee." "Uncok - slowleee," she mimicked.

He released the pressure on her hands and let the gun drop down towards the ground. "Safe," he said as he moved the gun about in a casual fashion. "Safe." "Sayf," she attempted.

He then took the gun from her and put it back in her holster. Unlike his, which was on the left side of his body at an angle, the holster she was wearing hung down on the outside of her right leg.